Bonded

Chapter 6: Survival

CHAPTER SUMMARY: Rey is confronted with a new challenge— freezing temperature.

Rey catches her breath, the hilt of her blaster resting against her cheek. She's crouched behind a large boulder, her back pressed against it.

They're getting closer. She can hear them, sense them. There are so many... at least thirty, probably more.

She can't fight them off. Even she's not that good.

No, there's only one option here. And it's straight ahead of her.

She looks through the forest, sparsely populated with dead trees, grayish-white and knotted.

It's about 100 meters ahead. Maybe less. She'll need to be fast.

She lowers her blaster, attaching it to her hip. She secures the strap of her pouch, then leans forward, dropping to her knees and planting her palms on the hard earth. Her breath is short, leaving soft mist in the cold air.

She closes her eyes, concentrating. She slows her breath, focusing on the Force within, losing herself in its energy. It flows through her body, calming her mind, priming her muscles.

She takes a deep breath, then rises halfway, bracing a toe against the boulder, fingertips spreading across the earth like claws. The shouts of her attackers echo behind her, footsteps getting closer, dead leaves crunching under thick boots.

Yet the forest grows quiet, sounds melting away until there's nothing but the pulsing of her heartbeat.

Her eyes snap open.

She takes off at full speed, sprinting through the forest, boots pumping against the ground, arms swinging by her sides.

Blaster fire whizzes around her, but she keeps her eyes forward, reaching out through the Force to sense the shots, weaving around them.

The fire grows more intense... there's more than she can dodge... a shot nips her right thigh just before she leaps over the cliff and into the raging river below.

A thousand daggers of cold pierce her body, freezing her in shock. She only moves because of the raging current, sweeping her forward. She fights to regain control of her legs, kicking to the surface.

She bursts through, taking a giant gulp of air, but she's barely out for a second before blaster fire rains down from above.

She ducks under the water, letting the current carry her away. The rapids pull her violently, thrashing her against sharp edges. She tries to keep her eyes open, see where she's going, but she's being tossed to and fro, white waters raging all around. She only comes up to gasp for air, then immediately dips down.

Suddenly, she gets caught from behind.

She pops her head out of water, twisting around to see what's keeping her. She's instantly met with blaster fire.

She ducks back under, kicking and flailing, trying to free herself, but it's no use. Finally, she pulls the strap of her pouch over her head and releases.

She surges forward, her jacket ripping off her as the river sweeps her away.

She pops above the surface, crashing against a large boulder, then another. The rapids toss her from side to side, bruising her, cutting her, but also making her a more difficult target.

She turns around just in time to see the edge not two feet ahead. She tumbles over the waterfall, down, down, into the deep below.

For a split second, the roar of the rapids disappears. It's almost peaceful, like the quiet heart of a storm.